1965 Mustang A/FX - Les Ritchey

#A1801880 - Pre-Order - expected in the late 3rd quarter of 2024 (announced 4/3/24) in 1:18 scale is this 1965 Ford Mustang A/FX Drag Car - As Driven by Les Ritchey. This drag car will be made by ACME using the Exact Detail tooling that has been used for the previous A/FX Mustangs.

Les Ritchey, a legendary figure in the world of drag racing, played a pivotal role in the development of the Ford A/Factory Experimental A/FX Mustang. To capitalize on the growing popularity of drag racing, Ford authorized the production of several stock-appearing NHRA-legal Mustangs. These cars were meant to compete in the Factory Experimental (A/FX) class. The partnership between Les and Ronda peaked in 1965, the SOHC 427-cid Ford Mustang that ran mid-10s in A/FX form. However, the Mopar drivers decided to hit the match race trail for no-holds-barred racing with their altered-wheelbase Dodge and Plymouth entries that had been outlawed for A/FX competition, which was the start of the Funny Car revolution. By switching to fuel injection, nitromethane, and later superchargers, they began to run in the nine-second zone and soon dipped into the eights, which overshadowed the 10-second performances of the legal A/FX cars such as Ronda’s Mustang.

“Of all the cars I raced, the 1965 Mustang was the most fun to drive. We felt it was quite a feat to run in the 10s with a manual four-speed transmission,” said Ronda. “But we couldn’t compete with the Funny Cars for the fans’ attention.”
Ronda was rewarded for fulfilling Ford’s requests when he was given a stretched wheelbase Mustang that immediately ran deep into the eight-second zone. Tragedy struck when his best friend Ritchey was killed in a racing accident early that year, and Ronda, badly shaken, reverted to a more conservative tune-up for slower nine-second times for several months.

This car has all of the exceptional details that you have come to expect from ACME, such as well detailed 1965 Mustang body, chassis and interior, a dual carburated SOHC 427 engine, drag suspension, a teardrop lift-off hood, opening doors and trunk. This Mustang is an ACME exclusive and is sure to sell out fast since there will only be 504 cars made.

At this time, you can Pre-Order with FREE shipping (to US48) if reserved before they arrive. A $3 handling charge (for packaging materials) will apply to all single or multi-car shipments. All pre-orders help get projects made, and we appreciate every one. No credit cards are charged until the cars are shipping, and these are expected in the late 3rd quarter of 2024.